Alibaba will launch an international version of the Taobao marketplace

WUZHEN China (Reuters) – Jack Ma, founder of China’s Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (BABA.N), said on Thursday the company would set up an international version of its Taobao e-commerce marketplace to serve global shoppers in multiple languages, including English and Chinese.

Alibaba currently has an international e-commerce platform specializing in wholesale goods called Aliexpress, but it does not offer a similar offering for consumers to sell to each other.

Ma made the remark on the sidelines of a meeting in Hangzhou, eastern China, between Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Chinese and foreign internet industry leaders. The meeting coincided with the World Internet Conference, which was held for three days in the city of Wuzhen.

(Correct Aliexpress description)

(Reporting by Paul Carsten; Writing by Gerry Shih; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Kenneth Maxwell)